Transforming College Sports

"Looking down the road, how institutions classify athletes is going to change. A model where athletes are considered employees is coming, and adding athletes as W-2 employees will have a dramatic impact on schools' workers comp, health benefits, and insurance costs." - Andrew Allen, Consultant, Collegiate Sports & NIL Risk Management at Dissinger Reed, A Division of HUB International

Andrew was one of our industry experts featured in our HigherEdRisk Summer Edition. If you want to learn more about NIL risks as well as where to find resources to help you prepare for these changes and future legal challenges read the article today.

In addition, if college sports couldn't get more complicated, the Trump administration just issued an Executive Order "Saving College Sports" on July 24th, 2025.

It appears that the executive order codifies some of the key provisions from the House v. NCAA settlement and aligns with College Sports Commission recommendations. It prohibits third-party pay-for-play arrangements, including collective payments, and mandates legitimate business justifications for compensation.

However, the order also asks the Secretary of Labor and NLRB to "determine and implement the appropriate measures with respect to clarifying the status of collegiate athletes, including through guidance, rules, or other appropriate actions, that will maximize the educational benefits and opportunities provided by higher education institutions through athletics."

What does this mean? In my opinion, the provision appears to lean toward preventing college athletes from being classified as employees- so are going to have more legal drama! How will this impact the NCAA settlement and impact the risk profile of colleges and universities?

I guess time will tell, but in the meantime. I found this quote very interesting.

"Plain and simple, college athletes don't need Trump's help, and he shouldn't be aiding the NCAA at the expense of athletes," stated Steve Berman, managing partner and co-founder of Hagens Berman, to Yahoo Sports.

Looking to the experts out there in the LinkedIn community, what is your take on this recent executive order, its future impact on the settlement, and what additional risks do you see on the horizon?